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December 13, 2012

Survey Finds MBA Applicants Still Prefer GMAT Over GRE

Even though approximately 69 percent of business schools now give applicants the option of submitting GRE (Graduate Record Exam) scores rather than the GMAT, a new survey announced today reveals b-school hopefuls still aren’t jumping on this alternative option.

In Kaplan Test Prep’s 2012 survey of business school admissions officers, who were polled by phone between August and September, roughly half of the schools surveyed (46 percent) say fewer than 1 in 10 applicants submitted a GRE score this past admissions cycle.

Data supports applicants’ wariness ”“ while the majority of business schools (69 percent) say scores from both tests are viewed equally, 29 percent say that applicants who submit a GMAT score have an advantage over applicants who submit a GRE score.

In the business school admissions test arms race, increasing acceptance of the GRE may have hit a plateau. Of the 31 percent of business schools that remain GMAT-only, only 17 percent say they are likely to begin accepting the GRE for the next admissions cycle.

Integrated Reasoning, the new GMAT section added in June 2012, may be a possible roadblock for its competitor: 24 percent of GMAT-only schools say the change, designed to make the GMAT more reflective of the MBA experience, makes it less likely they’ll begin accepting the GRE.

“As long as business schools signal the slightest advantage in taking the GMAT, it’s hard to see more applicants going the GRE route,” says Andrew Mitchell, director of pre-business programs, Kaplan Test Prep. “Our advice to students: take the GMAT if you plan to apply only to business school, but if you’re unsure whether your path will take you to graduate school or business school, consider taking the GRE.”